Chapter 104 This Hero Is For Real [Pt 1]

'The fuck? What kind of development is this?'

Why would parents tell a kid something so gory? And why was she looking at me like that?

'Death by Demons... just how many times did she hear that?' I stared at the little girl with very conflicted emotions.

Of course, as the Hero, I could only be one thing to folks like her.

"Of course..." My hand landed on her soft brown hair and smiled confidently.

Crouching a little, so we could be closer in height, I made sure my blue eyes connected with hers.

"... I'll save everyone."

We both smiled at each other, and I felt some warm fuzzy feeling within me. The child's innocent grin made the emotion rise even more.

It made me mean every single word of assurance I told her. For the sake of children like her, and the hope of all the people in this City, I couldn't lose.

"That's a promise."

*

*

*

The girl bounced off, smiling brightly as she left.

As I watched her small frame leave, I felt my heart ache. This was reality, and everyone was depending on me.

"The Hero is so kind."

"Indeed."

"We trust the Hero."

These helpless people needed someone to rely on. It made me feel shitty that they had me, not a genuine Hero.

Still, I could only try my best, right?

"Sarah, Byron, and Lucy; you guys will be with me in the meeting."

Lucy was generally in charge of our military. Sarah was support based, and Byron handled stuff like food distribution and supplies.

'My Inventory contains the food we'll be using, but I can't be the one in charge of tasks like that...'

It wasn't due to pride. These guys just wouldn't let me do stuff like that.

'Lilith will be commanding the Demons. I'll let them know in the meeting too...'

"Tell Lilith she can come out of the Golem. We'll be introducing her to everyone in the meeting."

"Understood!" Sarah responded to my instructions.

"Alright then. I will be taking a walk to survey the area. You should also relax until everything is set." I smiled at everyone.

The One Hundred and Fifty humans smiled and nodded in excitement, happy to recieve my benevolence—at least, that was what it seemed like.

"Alright. I'll be back shortly."

*

*

*

Once I had everyone off my back, I made use of my alone time by using my camouflage cloak to take a silent walk.

The eerie silence of the Adventurers City was terrifying, and the terrible expectation of the future had my heart racing.

Still, I calmed myself.

"Status Information."

[SYSTEM WINDOW]

Name: Samuel Peterson

Level: 75

Age: 17 Years

Gender: Male

Current Condition: Exhausted, Relieved, Slightly Annoyed.

Status Infliction: Sleepy

Title: Hero [See Additional Titles]

~[QUEST DETAILS]~

[FEATURES]

~ Stats~

~Skills[Unlocked]~

~Inventory [Unlocked]~

~Character List~

~Shop [Unlocked]~

~Arcana Value [Unrestricted]~

<You have not met the requirements to unlock some Features>

[More Features will be added subsequently]

[END OF INFORMATION]

[Stats]

Level: 75

Exp: 87.99%

Class: None (Check Available Class)

Karmic Value: 35,200

[Basic Ability]

HP: 85/85

MP: 80/80

Strength: 50

Agility: 90

Vitality: 80

Intelligence: 100

<Stat Points: 201>

[Complete Quests and slay enemies to obtain Stat Points and EXP. Doing so will increase your Level and also grant you Stat Points]

[END OF INFORMATION]

[Skills]

<1> Five Seconds Rule

<2> Rune crafting

<3> Freedom Of Expression

<4> With Great Responsibility There Must Also Come Great Power

—Warrior's Skin (Byron)

—Blessing Of Recovery (Sarah)

—Blessing Of Power (Sarah)

—Mana Strengthening (Lucy)

—Marionette (Lilith)

—Evil Eye (Lilith)

<5> Insight

<6> Martial Arts

<7> Predator

<8> Draconic Transformation

<9> Domination

[Titles]

<1> Hero

<2> Fraud

<3> Conqueror

<4> Goblin Hunter

<5> Dragon Hunter

<6> Fool

<7> Slave Master

<8> Demon Contractor

<9> The One Who Unifies

[End Of Information]

"Would you look at that? I've definitely grown from the way I was back then..." A smile formed on my face.

I was Level 69 before, but I recently added 6 new Levels from the recent mishap.

You'd expect me to gain more EXP and Levels, considering I literally killed over a thousand Demons—fifty of which were certainly Mid-Demons.

'The Mana Bomb did most of the work, so no EXP for me. Sigh...'

The ones who directly died thanks to my direct actions were under the [The One Who Unifies] Title. As such, they didn't resist.

'The problem with this Title is that it discourages killing those you're trying to unify, so the EXP gain there is also cut short...'

Thanks to that, I only grew slightly. It was regrettable, but I achieved my goal regardless, so it was fine.

Still...

"That Demon, Hogun, he's Level 100..." That was the Max Level that his kind could ever reach.

Coupled with the fact that he was a Demon, his base stats were definitely going to be much higher than normal.

'Not only am I in Level 75, but even if I was in Level 100, he'd still be stronger.'

Shit! Things were worse than I thought. Way worse!

If he was the Final Boss, then I would have at least found a way to get around the barrier of Levels. However, the problem had gone beyond that.

'That was simply one of the camps that I attacked. Plus, with his attitude, it seems he's the leader of that regiment. The fact that he was willing to risk his life to fight means there are others in the high chain of command...'

He most likely had other Mid-Demon brethren leading the army.

The question was whether or not they were all as monstrous as him.

'If that's the case, then there's even more trouble. Damnit...'

I had to think of a way out of the problem, but the more I questioned everything and tried to find a loophole, it seemed futile.

Even with the resources I had, there was no way to guarantee the lives and property of everyone in the City.

One way or the other, there was going to be loss. It was too late to avoid that.

'No use regretting the past. I just have to do all I can now. I can't be stuck here.' Inhaling and exhaling calmly, I looked at the city with tired eyes.

"I'll protect you guys. I have to!"